Recording-material processing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A recording-material processing apparatus includes a supporter, an advancing unit, and a contact member. The supporter supports at least one recording material from below. The advancing unit advances toward the recording material from a lateral side of the recording material supported by the supporter. The contact member is attached to the advancing unit and comes into contact with an edge of the recording material as the advancing unit advances toward the recording material. The contact member is movable in a direction opposite to an advancing direction of the advancing unit.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based on and claims priority under 35 USC 119 from Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-210646 filed Nov. 21, 2019 and Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-057592 filed Mar. 27, 2020.

BACKGROUND (i) Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to recording-material processing apparatuses.

(ii) Related Art

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-240295 discloses a process involving completely loading a sheet-like medium discharged from a discharging unit onto a tray and subsequently moving an aligning member into and out of contact with an end surface of the sheet-like medium extending parallel to the discharging direction of the sheet-like medium, so as to positionally align the end surface.

SUMMARY

A recording-material aligning process involves, for example, pressing against an edge of a recording material from a lateral side of the recording material to move the recording material to a predetermined position.

During this recording-material aligning process, a load is applied to the recording material. If this load is large, there is a possibility that the recording material may cockle or may flap upward and be misaligned when the load is released. Moreover, if the load applied to the recording material is large, the edges of the recording material may possibly crease.

Aspects of non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure relate to reducing a load applied to a recording material during a recording-material aligning process, as compared with a case where a contact member that comes into contact with the recording material during the recording-material aligning process does not move relative to a member having a function for supporting the contact member.

Aspects of certain non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure address the above advantages and/or other advantages not described above. However, aspects of the non-limiting embodiments are not required to address the advantages described above, and aspects of the non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure may not address advantages described above.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a recording-material processing apparatus including a supporter, an advancing unit, and a contact member. The supporter supports at least one recording material from below. The advancing unit advances toward the recording material from a lateral side of the recording material supported by the supporter. The contact member is attached to the advancing unit and comes into contact with an edge of the recording material as the advancing unit advances toward the recording material. The contact member is movable in a direction opposite to an advancing direction of the advancing unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail based on the following figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates the overall configuration of an image forming system;

FIG. 2 illustrates the configuration of a first post-processing device;

FIG. 3 illustrates a first load section, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow III in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 illustrates a first advancing member and so on, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow IV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 illustrates the first advancing member and a corresponding one of contact members, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow V in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 illustrates a supporter, the first advancing member, and the contact member, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow VI in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 illustrates another arrangement example of the supporter, at least one sheet, the first advancing member, and the contact member;

FIG. 8 illustrates the supporter, the sheet, the first advancing member, a second advancing member, and the contact members, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow VIII in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 illustrates a processing example when sheets are loaded in an alternating fashion;

FIG. 10 illustrates the supporter, the sheets, the second advancing member, and the corresponding contact member, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow X in FIG. 9;

FIGS. 11A and 11B illustrate a moving mechanism;

FIG. 12 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of a controller;

FIGS. 13A and 13B illustrate another configuration example of each contact member and so on;

FIG. 14 illustrates the configuration of the contact member and so on;

FIG. 15 illustrates the state of the supporter; and

FIG. 16 illustrates another positional relationship between the sheet and each contact member.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the appended drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates the overall configuration of an image forming system 1.

The image forming system 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes an image forming apparatus 2 that forms an image onto a sheet P as an example of a recording material, and also includes a sheet processing apparatus 3 that performs a predetermined process on the sheet P having the image formed thereon by the image forming apparatus 2.

The image forming apparatus 2 forms the image onto the sheet P by an electrophotographic method or an inkjet method.

The sheet processing apparatus 3 as an example of a recording-material processing apparatus is provided with a transport device 10 that transports the sheet P output from the image forming apparatus 2 downstream, and is also provided with a slip-sheet feeding device 20 that feeds a slip sheet, such as a cardboard or window sheet P, to the sheet P transported by the transport device 10.

The sheet processing apparatus 3 is also provided with a folding device 30 that performs a folding process, such as a C-folding process or a Z-folding process, on the sheet P transported from the transport device 10.

Moreover, the sheet processing apparatus 3 is provided with a first post-processing device 40 that is provided downstream of the folding device 30 and that performs, for example, a hole punching process, an edge binding process, and/or a saddle stitching process on the sheet P.

More specifically, the first post-processing device 40 provided downstream of the folding device 30 performs a process on a sheet bundle (an example of a recording-material bundle) constituted of multiple sheets P having images formed thereon by the image forming apparatus 2, as well as a process on a sheet P by sheet P basis.

The sheet processing apparatus 3 is also provided with a second post-processing device 500 that is provided downstream of the first post-processing device 40 and that further performs a process on a middle-folded or saddle-stitched sheet bundle.

Moreover, the sheet processing apparatus 3 is provided with a controller 100 that controls each functional unit of the sheet processing apparatus 3.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of the controller 100.

The controller 100 has a central processing unit (CPU) 111 as an example of a processor, a read only memory (ROM) 112 having basic software and a basic input output system (BIOS) stored therein, and a random access memory (RAM) 113 used as a work area. The controller 100 is a so-called computer.

In this exemplary embodiment, the CPU 111 executes a program stored in, for example, the ROM 112, so as to execute various types of predetermined processes.

The program executed by the CPU 111 may be provided to the sheet processing apparatus 3 in a state where the program is stored in a computer-readable storage medium, such as a magnetic storage medium (such as a magnetic tape or a magnetic disk), an optical storage medium (such as an optical disk), a magneto-optical storage medium, or a semiconductor memory.

Alternatively, the program executed by the CPU 111 may be provided to the sheet processing apparatus 3 by using a communication unit, such as the Internet.

In this exemplary embodiment, the term “processor” refers to hardware in a broad sense. Examples of the processor include general processors (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, and programmable logic device).

Furthermore, the term “processor” is broad enough to encompass one processor or plural processors in collaboration which are located physically apart from each other but may work cooperatively. The order of operations of the processor is not limited to one described in this exemplary embodiment, and may be changed.

Referring to FIG. 1, the first post-processing device 40 is provided with a hole punching unit 41 that performs a hole punching process on a sheet P, and is also provided with an edge-binding stapler unit 42 that performs an edge binding process on a sheet bundle.

The first post-processing device 40 is also provided with a first load section 43 onto which a sheet P from the edge-binding stapler unit 42 is loaded, and is also provided with a second load section 45 onto which a sheet P that has not undergone a process in the first post-processing device 40 or a sheet P that has undergone only a hole punching process is loaded. The first load section 43 and the second load section 45 are exposed outside the device so that a sheet P loaded on the first load section 43 or the second load section 45 is removable manually by an operator.

Moreover, the first post-processing device 40 is provided with a saddle stitching unit 44 that creates a double-page booklet by middle-folding and/or saddle-stitching a sheet bundle.

FIG. 2 illustrates the configuration of the first post-processing device 40.

The first post-processing device 40 is provided with an inlet 49 that receives a sheet P transported from the folding device 30.

The hole punching unit 41 is provided immediately behind the inlet 49. The hole punching unit 41 performs, for example, a two-hole or four-hole punching process on the sheet P transported to the first post-processing device 40.

A first sheet transport path R1 extends from the inlet 49 to the edge-binding stapler unit 42 and is used for transporting the sheet P received by the inlet 49 to the edge-binding stapler unit 42.

Furthermore, a second sheet transport path R2 branches off from the first sheet transport path R1 at a first branch point B1 and is used for transporting the sheet P toward the second load section 45.

Moreover, a third sheet transport path R3 branches off from the first sheet transport path R1 at a second branch point B2 and is used for transporting the sheet P toward the saddle stitching unit 44.

A switch gate 70 is provided for switching (setting) the transport destination for the sheet P to any one of the first sheet transport path R1 to the third sheet transport path R3.

The edge-binding stapler unit 42 is provided with a sheet accumulating section 60 that creates a sheet bundle by accumulating a required number of sheets P.

The sheet accumulating section 60 is provided with a support plate 67 that is tilted relative to the horizontal direction and that supports one or more transported sheets P from below. In this exemplary embodiment, a sheet bundle is created on this support plate 67.

Furthermore, the edge-binding stapler unit 42 is provided with a binding device 50 that performs a binding process (i.e., an edge binding process) on an edge of the sheet bundle created at the sheet accumulating section 60.

Moreover, the edge-binding stapler unit 42 is provided with a discharge roller 61 that is rotationally driven so as to discharge the sheet bundle created at the sheet accumulating section 60 onto the first load section 43 provided outside the device.

Furthermore, a movable roller 62 is provided in a movable manner between a position where the movable roller 62 is retracted from the discharge roller 61 and a position where the movable roller 62 is in pressure contact with the discharge roller 61.

When a process is to be performed by the edge-binding stapler unit 42, the inlet 49 first receives a transported sheet P.

Then, the sheet P is transported along the first sheet transport path R1 and reaches the edge-binding stapler unit 42.

After being transported onto the support plate 67, the sheet P falls onto the support plate 67. This sheet P is supported by the support plate 67 from below and is slid on the support plate 67 by a tilting-and-rotating member 63 attached to the support plate 67.

Subsequently, the sheet P abuts on an end guide 64 attached to an end of the support plate 67. More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the end guide 64 extends upward in FIG. 2 relative to the end of the support plate 67. The sheet P moving on the support plate 67 abuts on this end guide 64.

Accordingly, in this exemplary embodiment, the sheet P stops moving. Subsequently, this operation is performed every time a sheet P is transported from upstream, whereby a sheet bundle with aligned sheets P is created on the support plate 67.

In this exemplary embodiment, a sheet-width-position aligning member 65 for positionally aligning the sheet bundle in the width direction thereof is further provided.

In this exemplary embodiment, every time a sheet P is fed onto the support plate 67, the widthwise edges of the sheet P are pressed by the sheet-width-position aligning member 65, thereby positionally aligning sheets P (i.e., sheet bundle) in the width direction thereof.

When a predetermined number of sheets P are loaded on the support plate 67, the binding device 50 performs a binding process on an edge of the sheet bundle.

Subsequently, in this exemplary embodiment, the movable roller 62 advances toward the discharge roller 61, so that the sheet bundle is nipped by the movable roller 62 and the discharge roller 61. Then, the discharge roller 61 is rotationally driven, so that the sheet bundle is transported to the first load section 43.

The binding device 50 is movable away from and toward the viewer viewing FIG. 2 and is capable of performing the binding process on the sheets P at multiple locations in this exemplary embodiment.

The binding process by the binding device 50 is sometimes not performed. In this case, the sheets P not having undergone the binding process are transported from the sheet accumulating section 60 to the first load section 43.

FIG. 3 illustrates the first load section 43, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow III in FIG. 2.

The first load section 43 is provided with a supporter 300 that supports at least one sheet P from below. The supporter 300 is tilted relative to the horizontal direction. The sheet P does not necessarily have to be supported by the supporter 300 alone. Alternatively, for example, when the supporter 300 is tilted by a large angle relative to the horizontal direction, the supporter 300 may support the sheet P together with another part having an angle relative to the supporter 300, such as a side surface of a housing of the first post-processing device 40 in FIG. 2.

Furthermore, the first load section 43 is provided with advancing members 600 that advance toward the sheet P from the lateral sides of the sheet P supported by the supporter 300. The advancing members 600 correspond to an advancing unit according to this exemplary embodiment.

In this exemplary embodiment, the advancing members 600 include a first advancing member 610 and a second advancing member 620.

The first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P from one lateral side of the sheet P, and the second advancing member 620 advances toward the sheet P from the other lateral side of the sheet P.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first advancing member 610 includes a rotation shaft 612, an arm section 613 that rotates about the rotation shaft 612, and an advancing section 614 that advances toward the sheet P from a lateral side of the sheet P when the arm section 613 rotates to a lower position. Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the side of the advancing section 614 closer toward the rotation shaft 612 is defined as a rotation-shaft-610A side, whereas the distal-end side of the advancing section 614 is defined as a distal-end-610B side.

More specifically, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 move in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the sheet P (i.e., the width direction of the sheet P) so as to advance toward the sheet P from the lateral sides of the sheet P.

When the sheet P is to be loaded onto the first load section 43, the sheet P is transported in a direction indicated by an arrow 3A in FIG. 3.

In this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 move in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 move in a direction intersecting the vertical direction so as to advance toward the sheet P from the lateral sides of the sheet P.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, a contact member 700 that comes into contact with the sheet P is attached to each of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

The rotation shaft 612 shown in FIG. 5 is disposed to extend in the advancing direction of each of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, each of the first advancing member 610, the second advancing member 620, and the contact members 700 is provided in a rotatable manner about the corresponding rotation shaft 612 extending in the advancing direction.

In more detail, the first advancing member 610, the second advancing member 620, and the contact members 700 are provided in a rotatable manner about the corresponding rotation shafts 612 in a direction indicated by arrows 4A in FIG. 4.

The contact members 700 (see FIG. 3) are attached to an area located at the sheet P side of the first advancing member 610 and to an area located at the sheet P side of the second advancing member 620, and come into contact with edges PB of the sheet P as the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 advance toward the sheet P.

More specifically, the contact members 700 are provided closer toward the sheet P than the advancing members 600, and come into contact with the edges PB of the sheet P as the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 advance toward the sheet P.

As will be described later, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact members 700 are movable in a direction opposite to the advancing direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620. Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact members 700 advance toward the sheet P in a direction orthogonal to the vertical direction and come into contact with the sheet P. Then, the contact members 700 move toward the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 disposed at the lateral sides of the sheet P. The surfaces of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 located at identical positions in the direction orthogonal to the vertical direction of the sheet P receive the impact of the contact members 700 via coil springs KB (see FIG. 5).

FIG. 4 illustrates the first advancing member 610 and so on, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow IV in FIG. 3. In FIG. 4, the supporter 300 is not shown.

The first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 protrude from a device body 40A of the first post-processing device 40.

In this exemplary embodiment, a moving mechanism 730 that moves the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 is provided.

In this exemplary embodiment, the moving mechanism 730 is capable of rotating the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 in the direction indicated by the arrows 4A in FIG. 4 about a rotation axis indicated by reference sign 3X in FIG. 3. In other words, in this exemplary embodiment, the moving mechanism 730 is capable of rotating each of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 about the rotation shaft 612 shown in FIG. 5.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 (see FIG. 4) and the second advancing member 620 are movable in the up-down direction.

The first load section 43 is exposed to the outside. When the operator is to remove a sheet P loaded on the supporter 300, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are located at an upper position and are retracted from the sheet P to be removed.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the moving mechanism 730 is capable of moving the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 in a direction indicated by an arrow 4X in FIG. 4.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are movable relative to the edges PB of the sheet P (not shown in FIG. 4).

Moreover, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact members 700 are positioned closer toward the sheet P (not shown in FIG. 4) than the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

FIG. 5 illustrates the first advancing member 610 and the corresponding one of the contact members 700, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow V in FIG. 4. In this exemplary embodiment, the second advancing member 620 has a configuration identical to that of the first advancing member 610.

The contact member 700 is provided with two protrusions 740 protruding toward the first advancing member 610. In this exemplary embodiment, the contact member 700 tilts about locations where the protrusions 740 are provided (which will be described later).

In other words, in this exemplary embodiment, the two protrusions 740 function as shafts. In this exemplary embodiment, the contact member 700 tilts about each of these shafts.

In this exemplary embodiment, the protrusions 740 include a distal-end-side protrusion 741 located at the distal-end-610B side of the first advancing member 610 and a base-side protrusion 742 located at the base-610A side (i.e., the rotation-shaft-610A side) of the first advancing member 610.

The two protrusions 740 are disposed at different positions in the longitudinal direction of the contact member 700.

The first advancing member 610 is provided with two holes 750 to which the protrusions 740 provided on the contact member 700 are fitted.

Furthermore, the contact member 700 according to this exemplary embodiment has a base-side end 700A located at the base-610A side of the first advancing member 610 and an opposite-side end 700B located at the opposite side from the base-side end 700A (i.e., at the distal-end-610B side of the first advancing member 610).

In this exemplary embodiment, a distance L1 between the base-side protrusion 742 serving as one of the protrusions 740 and the base-side end 700A is smaller than a distance L2 between the distal-end-side protrusion 741 serving as the other protrusion 740 and the opposite-side end 700B.

In this exemplary embodiment, a distal-end-side hole 751 serving as the hole 750 located at the distal-end-610B side of the first advancing member 610 is a long hole. This long hole is disposed to extend in the longitudinal direction of the contact member 700.

On the other hand, a base-side hole 752 serving as the hole 750 located at the base-610A side of the first advancing member 610 is a circular hole.

In this exemplary embodiment, the distal-end-side hole 751 serving as one of the two holes 750 has a cross-sectional area (i.e., a cross-sectional area taken along a plane orthogonal to the axial direction of the hole 750) is larger than the cross-sectional area of the base-side hole 752 serving as the other one of the holes 750.

In this exemplary embodiment, when the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P, a predetermined contact section (to be described later) of the contact member 700 comes into contact with the sheet P.

In this exemplary embodiment, the distal-end-side hole 751 located closer toward this contact section and serving as one of the two holes 750 has a cross-sectional area larger than the cross-sectional area of the base-side hole 752.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the coil springs KB as an example of elastic members are provided between the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610.

Although the coil springs KB are described as an example in this description, other examples of the elastic members include plate springs and rubber members, as alternatives to the coil springs KB.

In this exemplary embodiment, the coil springs KB provided are multiple coil springs.

In detail, in this exemplary embodiment, two coil springs KB are provided, namely, a distal-end-side coil spring KB1 provided at the distal-end-610B side of the first advancing member 610 and a base-side coil spring KB2 provided at the base-610A side of the first advancing member 610.

In this exemplary embodiment, the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is provided around the distal-end-side protrusion 741, and the base-side coil spring KB2 is provided around the base-side protrusion 742.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, regulation screws 220 for regulating the movement of the contact member 700 in a direction extending away from the first advancing member 610 are provided.

More specifically, the regulation screws 220 regulate the movement of the contact member 700 in the direction extending away from the first advancing member 610 so as to prevent the contact member 700 from becoming detached.

The regulation screws 220 are attached to the distal end of the distal-end-side protrusion 741 and to the distal end of the base-side protrusion 742.

When the contact member 700 is to move away from the first advancing member 610, a head 221 of each regulation screw 220 abuts on the first advancing member 610. Consequently, the contact member 700 is prevented from becoming detached from the first advancing member 610.

As shown in FIG. 5, in this exemplary embodiment, in a case where thicknesses in the advancing direction when the contact member 700 advances toward the sheet P (see FIG. 3) are compared, a thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is smaller than a thickness W6 of the advancing section 614.

In other words, when the thickness W6 in the advancing direction of a part of the first advancing member 610 that faces the contact member 700 is compared with the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 in the advancing direction, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is smaller than the thickness W6 of the first advancing member 610.

In other words, in this exemplary embodiment, when thicknesses in a direction intersecting the extending direction of the edges PB (see FIG. 3) of the sheet P are compared, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 and the thickness W6 of the advancing section 614 are different from each other. In this exemplary embodiment, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is smaller than the thickness W6 of the advancing section 614.

The contact member 700 and the advancing section 614 are disposed in the extending direction of the edges PB (see FIG. 3) of the sheet P loaded on the supporter 300. When the thicknesses in the direction intersecting this extending direction are compared, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is smaller than the thickness W6 of the advancing section 614.

In this case, the term “thickness” refers to the thickness of the plate-like section, but does not refer to the thickness of a section that is partially thick due to a protrusion or the thickness of a section that is partially thin due to a recess.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, in this exemplary embodiment, the advancing section 614 is provided with protrusions 614A, but the thickness W6 of the advancing section 614 refers to the thickness of a section excluding these protrusions 614A.

Likewise, the contact member 700 is also provided with the protrusions 740, but the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 refers to the thickness of a section excluding these protrusions 740.

FIGS. 13A and 13B illustrate another configuration example of the contact member 700 and so on. As shown in FIG. 13A, the advancing section 614 is provided with a protrusion 614B in this configuration example. The thickness W6 of the advancing section 614 refers to the thickness of a section excluding this protrusion 614B.

In this configuration example, the protrusions 614A shown in FIG. 5 are not provided, such that the heads 221 of the regulation screws 220 abut on a side surface 614X of the advancing section 614 having a tabular shape.

Furthermore, in the configuration example shown in FIG. 13A, the contact member 700 is provided with a protrusion 789 not shown in FIG. 5. The thickness W5 of the contact member 700 refers to the thickness of a section excluding this protrusion 789.

FIG. 13B illustrates the advancing section 614, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow XIIIB in FIG. 13A. In this advancing section 614, multiple recesses 700Y are provided in a surface facing the contact member 700 (see FIG. 13A).

The thickness W6 of the advancing section 614 refers to the thickness of a section where these recesses 700Y are not provided. In other words, the thickness W6 of the advancing section 614 refers to the thickness of the advancing section 614 assuming that these recesses 700Y are not provided.

FIG. 6 illustrates the supporter 300, the first advancing member 610, and the contact member 700, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow VI in FIG. 3.

In this exemplary embodiment, every time a sheet P is transported to the supporter 300, the first advancing member 610 advances toward this sheet P so that the contact member 700 is pressed against the corresponding edge PB of the sheet P.

In this case, the second advancing member 620 (not shown in FIG. 6) also advances toward the sheet P so that the contact member 700 provided at the second advancing member 620 is pressed against the corresponding edge PB of the sheet P.

When each contact member 700 is pressed against the corresponding edge PB of the sheet P, a predetermined contact section 780 of the contact member 700 comes into contact with the sheet P in this exemplary embodiment.

In this exemplary embodiment, the distal-end-side hole 751 (see FIG. 5) is located close to this contact section 780. In this exemplary embodiment, the cross-sectional area of the distal-end-side hole 751 is larger than the cross-sectional area of the base-side hole 752.

Accordingly, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact section 780 (see FIG. 6) of the contact member 700 is more easily movable than in a case where the cross-sectional area of the distal-end-side hole 751 is smaller than the cross-sectional area of the base-side hole 752.

More specifically, the side of the contact member 700 where the contact section 780 is located is easily retractable toward the first advancing member 610. As an alternative to this exemplary embodiment in which a region of the contact section 780 serves as a part of the contact member, a larger region of the contact member may come into contact with the sheet P. In that case, the contact section 780 becomes wider than in FIG. 6. If the contact section 780 extends over both holes, as viewed from the direction in FIG. 6, the hole located closer toward the center of the contact section is closer to the contact section.

FIG. 6 illustrates the first advancing member 610 and the contact member 700, as viewed from upstream in the advancing direction of the first advancing member 610.

Accordingly, when the first advancing member 610 and the contact member 700 are viewed from upstream in the advancing direction of the first advancing member 610, the contact member 700 is larger than the first advancing member 610 in this exemplary embodiment.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, an end 701 of the contact member 700 in the protruding direction of the first advancing member 610 is located further downstream in the protruding direction of the first advancing member 610 than an end 611 of the first advancing member 610.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the width of the contact member 700 is also larger than the width of the first advancing member 610.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, when widths in a direction orthogonal to the protruding direction of the first advancing member 610 are compared, a width W2 of the contact member 700 is larger than a width W1 of the first advancing member 610.

Moreover, in this exemplary embodiment, a lower edge 709 of the contact member 700 is located lower than a lower edge 610E of the first advancing member 610.

In this exemplary embodiment, when the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P, the multiple coil springs KB are disposed at different positions in the extending direction of the edges PB, as shown in FIG. 6.

In more detail, in this case, the base-side coil spring KB2 is located upstream in the transport direction of the sheet P, and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is located downstream in the transport direction of the sheet P.

In this exemplary embodiment, an upper surface 300A of the supporter 300 is provided with a recess 300B for avoiding interference among the first advancing member 610, the contact member 700, and the supporter 300.

Moreover, in this exemplary embodiment, the sheet P is positionally displaceable relative to the first advancing member 610. In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, the sheet P is movable relative to the first advancing member 610 in the up-down direction.

The sheet P is movable relative to the first advancing member 610 by, for example, moving the supporter 300 in the up-down direction.

In more detail, for example, with regard to the movement of the sheet P relative to the first advancing member 610, the sheet P is moved in the up-down direction by moving the supporter 300 in the up-down direction to shift the load position of the sheet P upward or downward.

In this exemplary embodiment, the elastic members are provided between the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610. In addition to the elastic members provided between the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610, a spring may further be disposed at the rotation shaft 612 (see FIG. 5) so that an impact may be absorbed in a dual fashion.

As a comparative example, a spring may be provided at the rotation shaft 612 alone such that an integral contact movable unit (not shown) having a combination of the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610 is formed. In this case, the contact section is advanceable toward the sheet P, but the integral contact movable unit requires sufficient rigidity since an impact received at the lateral sides of the sheet is absorbed not by the lateral sides of the sheet but by the rotation shaft 612 serving as a rotation fulcrum. This is not desirable since the load on the rotation shaft 612 increases.

The supporter 300, the first advancing member 610, and the contact member 700 will be further described with reference to FIG. 14 (illustrating the configuration of the contact member 700 and so on). The state shown in FIG. 14 is identical to the state shown in FIG. 6.

As shown in FIG. 14, the advancing section 614 provided in the first advancing member 610 has an end 614E extending in one direction and located at the downstream side in the one direction. In more detail, the advancing section 614 has the end 614E extending downstream in the transport direction of the sheet P and located at the downstream side in the transport direction.

In more detail, a section of the first advancing member 610 that faces the contact member 700 has the end 614E extending in the one direction and located at the downstream side in the transport direction.

The contact member 700 also extends downstream in the one direction. Moreover, the contact member 700 extends further downstream in the one direction than the end 614E of the first advancing member 610.

The contact member 700 has a downstream section 785 located further downstream in the one direction than the end 614E of the first advancing member 610 and an upstream section 786 located further upstream than the end 614E.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the downstream section 785 is provided with a wide portion 785A.

The wide portion 785A has a width H1 in the vertical direction that is larger than a width H2 of the upstream section 786 in the vertical direction.

In this exemplary embodiment, when a sheet P is to be removed from the first load section 43, the sheet P may possibly come into contact with the distal end of the contact member 700. In other words, the sheet P may sometimes come into contact with the downstream section 785 of the contact member 700.

In more detail, for example, when the sheet P is to be removed, the sheet P may sometimes be removed in a direction indicated by an arrow 4B in FIG. 4. In this case, the sheet P may sometimes come into contact with the downstream section 785 of the contact member 700.

In this case, with the contact member 700 being provided with the wide portion 785A, as in this exemplary embodiment, the contact member 700 is less likely to break, as compared with a case where the wide portion 785A is not provided.

In more detail, with the contact member 700 being provided with the wide portion 785A, the contact member 700 receives stress over a wider range, so that the contact member 700 is less likely to break.

In FIG. 14, the configuration of the first advancing member 610 located at one lateral side of the sheet P is illustrated. As mentioned above, in this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 have identical configurations. This implies that the second advancing member 620 is also provided with a wide portion 785A.

In a case where an excessive force is applied, for example, the contact member 700 may possibly move obliquely at an extreme angle such that the downstream section 785 alone moves toward the advancing section 614 of the first advancing member 610. Even if the contact member 700 moves obliquely at an extreme angle, since the downstream section 785 extends further downstream than the first advancing member 610, the end of the contact member 700 does not abut on the first advancing member 610. The contact member 700 may become difficult to move if it abuts on the first advancing member 610, or the contact member 700 may possibly break if the contact member 700 has lower rigidity than the first advancing member 610. In this exemplary embodiment, the two protrusions 740 are provided for preventing the contact member 700 from moving obliquely at an extreme angle relative to the advancing section 614 of the first advancing member 610, and the shape of the spring is set to the shape of the coil spring KB1, so that the contact member 700 is less likely to move obliquely during normal use.

FIG. 7 illustrates another arrangement example of the supporter 300, the sheet P, the first advancing member 610, and the contact member 700.

In this arrangement example, the supporter 300 has descended to a position lower than that in the state shown in FIG. 6, so that a section of the contact member 700 close to the lower edge 709 is in contact with the sheet P.

In more detail, in this arrangement example, a section of the contact member 700 located lower than the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is in contact with the sheet P.

More specifically, in this arrangement example, a section of the contact member 700 located lower than a central axis C of the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is in contact with the sheet P.

FIG. 8 illustrates the supporter 300, the sheet P, the first advancing member 610, the second advancing member 620, and the contact members 700, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow VIII in FIG. 7.

In the arrangement example shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a section of each contact member 700 located lower than the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is contact with the sheet P.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 8, the contact members 700 are tilted such that the contact members 700 overhang the edges PB of the sheet P.

When the section of each contact member 700 located lower than the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 comes into contact with the sheet P, the surface of the contact member 700 that presses against the sheet P faces downward at an angle. In this case, the contact members 700 overhang the edges PB of the sheet P.

In this case, a load is applied to the sheet P from above the edges PB. More specifically, in this case, the load is applied not only from above the sheet P but also from the lateral sides of the sheet P, so that a pressing load is applied onto the sheet P from above the sheet P.

Next, a processing example when sheets P are loaded in an alternating fashion will be described. In other words, the following processing example corresponds to when sheets P are loaded in an offset fashion.

As shown in FIG. 9 (illustrating the processing example when sheets P are loaded in an alternating fashion), in this exemplary embodiment, every time a predetermined number of sheets P are loaded, the sheets P are loaded in a state where the loading positions of the sheets P in the width direction are offset, so that the sheets P are loadable in an alternating fashion.

In more detail, a sheet P to be loaded at a first position and a sheet P to be loaded at a second position different from the first position in the width direction of the sheets P are loadable in an alternating fashion.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, a new sheet P is loadable onto an already-loaded sheet PX as a sheet P already loaded on the supporter 300. Moreover, the new sheet P is loadable in a state where the position thereof is offset from the already-loaded sheet PX.

Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 9, when sheets P are to be loaded in an alternating fashion, for example, the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheets P, whereas the second advancing member 620 serving as the other advancing member receives a sheet P moved thereto by being pressed by the first advancing member 610.

At the first advancing member 610 that presses against the sheet P, the contact member 700 thereof presses against the corresponding edge PB of the sheet P.

At the second advancing member 620 that receives the sheet P, the position of the second advancing member 620 is fixed. Thus, the sheet P moves toward the positionally-fixed second advancing member 620, and the second advancing member 620 stops the sheet P from moving.

At the second advancing member 620, the contact member 700 provided at the second advancing member 620 side is disposed in contact with the upper surface of the already-loaded sheet PX.

In this exemplary embodiment, the second advancing member 620 functions as a receiver. In this exemplary embodiment, the second advancing member 620 receives the sheet P that moves as the first advancing member 610 advances thereto.

In more detail, the contact member 700 attached to the second advancing member 620 receives this sheet P.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, the corresponding edge PB of the moving sheet P comes into contact with this contact member 700 so that the movement of the sheet P is regulated, whereby the sheet P stops at a predetermined position.

In this case, in this exemplary embodiment, this contact member 700 is supported by the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 and the base-side coil spring KB2 disposed between this contact member 700 and the second advancing member 620.

In FIG. 9, the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P and the second advancing member 620 receives the sheet P. Alternatively, if the sheet P is to be loaded in a state where the loading position of the sheet P has been changed to the other loading position, the second advancing member 620 advances toward the sheet P and the first advancing member 610 receives the sheet P.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the loading position of the sheet P is changed by moving the supporter 300 in the width direction of the sheet P.

Alternatively, the loading position of the sheet P may be changed by using another method, such as moving an outlet, through which sheets P are discharged toward the first load section 43, in the width direction of the sheet P.

As shown in FIG. 9, in this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 that presses against the sheet P is disposed lower than the second advancing member 620 that receives the sheet P.

Furthermore, the first advancing member 610 that presses against the sheet P is disposed in the state shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.

In this case, as mentioned above, at the first advancing member 610, the contact section 780 (see FIGS. 6 and 7) of the contact member 700 is in contact with the sheet P.

On the other hand, at the second advancing member 620 that receives the sheet P, the contact member 700 is disposed above the already-loaded sheet PX, as shown in FIG. 9.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact member 700 provided at the second advancing member 620 side is placed on the already-loaded sheet PX. More specifically, the contact member 700 provided at the second advancing member 620 side is disposed in contact with the already-loaded sheet PX.

On the other hand, in this exemplary embodiment, the second advancing member 620 is disposed above the already-loaded sheet PX in a state where the second advancing member 620 is not in contact with the already-loaded sheet PX.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, when the new sheet P is loaded on the already-loaded sheet PX, the first advancing member 610 advances toward this new sheet P from the opposite side of the second advancing member 620 with the new sheet P interposed therebetween, as indicated by an arrow 9A.

Moreover, in this exemplary embodiment, when the contact member 700 provided at the second advancing member 620 side comes into contact with the already-loaded sheet PX, the lower edge 709 of the contact member 700 comes into contact with the already-loaded sheet PX.

Although not described above, the lower edge 709 of the contact member 700 has a thickness D1 smaller than a thickness D2 of an upper edge 710 of the contact member 700 in this exemplary embodiment.

In more detail, each contact member 700 according to this exemplary embodiment is tabular and is disposed to extend in the transport direction of the sheet P. In the tabular contact member 700, the thickness D1 of the lower edge 709 is smaller than the thickness D2 of the upper edge 710.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, when thicknesses in the moving direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are compared, the thickness of the lower edge 709 is smaller than the thickness of the upper edge 710.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 9, in this exemplary embodiment, a lower section 700F located at the lower side of the contact member 700 decreases in thickness toward the lower edge 709.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the surface of the contact member 700 facing the second advancing member 620 is tapered such that the lower section 700F of the contact member 700 gradually decreases in thickness toward the lower edge 709 of the contact member 700.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, in the surface of the contact member 700 facing the second advancing member 620, the section located at the lower side of the contact member 700 is gradually inclined away from the second advancing member 620 as the section extends downward. Accordingly, in the lower section 700F described above, the thickness of the contact member 700 decreases toward the lower edge 709.

In more detail, in the surface of the contact member 700 facing the second advancing member 620, the section located at the lower side of the contact member 700 is provided with a tapered surface TM such that, in the lower section 700F, the thickness of the contact member 700 decreases toward the lower edge 709.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, the tapered surface TM is provided in a section of the contact member 700 that does not come into contact with the base-side coil spring KB2 and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, when the tapered surface TM, the base-side coil spring KB2, and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 are projected in a direction indicated by an arrow 9X in FIG. 9, there is no overlap between the tapered surface TM and the base-side coil spring KB2 or between the tapered surface TM and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, when the tapered surface TM, the base-side coil spring KB2, and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 are projected in the thickness direction of the contact member 700 as well as toward a plane 9Z parallel to the contact member 700, there is no overlap between the tapered surface TM and the base-side coil spring KB2 or between the tapered surface TM and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1.

Accordingly, in this exemplary embodiment, deformation of the contact member 700 may be suppressed, while a tapered shape is given to the contact member 700.

If the aforementioned tapered surface TM is provided in a section of the contact member 700 that comes into the base-side coil spring KB2 and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1, the contact member 700 tends to deform easily due to the contact member 700 having a small thickness in the section having the tapered surface TM.

In contrast, as described above, the section of the contact member 700 that does not come into contact with the base-side coil spring KB2 and the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is provided with the aforementioned tapered surface TM, so that deformation of the contact member 700 may be suppressed.

FIG. 10 illustrates the supporter 300, the sheets P, the second advancing member 620, and the contact member 700, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow X in FIG. 9.

In this exemplary embodiment, the second advancing member 620 that receives a sheet P is disposed above the already-loaded sheet PX, as mentioned above.

Furthermore, as mentioned above, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact member 700 is placed on the already-loaded sheet PX, and the lower edge 709 of the contact member 700 is in contact with the already-loaded sheet PX.

In this exemplary embodiment, the lower edge 709 is disposed along the surface of the already-loaded sheet PX, and the lower edge 709 and the already-loaded sheet PX are in line contact with each other.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, when the lower edge 709 is in contact with the already-loaded sheet PX, the parallelism between the lower edge 709 and the already-loaded sheet PX is higher than the parallelism between the lower edge 610E of the second advancing member 620 and the already-loaded sheet PX.

In this exemplary embodiment, for example, the first advancing member 610 that presses against a sheet P is disposed in the state shown in FIG. 6.

The second advancing member 620 that receives the sheet P is disposed in the state shown in FIG. 10. The second advancing member 620 is disposed to extend parallel to the already-loaded sheet PX more than the first advancing member 610.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, a line L11 connecting central axes C2 of the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 and the base-side coil spring KB2 provided at the first advancing member 610 side and the corresponding edge PB of the sheets P form an angle α, as shown in FIG. 6.

In contrast, a line L21 connecting central axes C21 of the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 and the base-side coil spring KB2 provided at the second advancing member 620 side and the corresponding edge PB of the sheet P form an angle β, as shown in FIG. 10.

In this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are disposed such that the angle α is larger than the angle β.

In this exemplary embodiment, at the second advancing member 620 side (see FIG. 10), a load applied toward the second advancing member 620 from a newly-fed sheet P (not shown in FIG. 10) is received by the coil springs KB. In this case, in this exemplary embodiment, the two coil springs KB, namely, the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 and the base-side coil spring KB2, receive this load.

In contrast, at the first advancing member 610 side (see FIG. 6), a load occurring as a result of a reaction from the sheet P is received by the coil springs KB, but this load is mostly received by the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 in this exemplary embodiment.

At the second advancing member 620 side (see FIG. 10) serving as the receiving side, the load is received by the two coil springs KB, as mentioned above, so that the load applied to each coil spring KB is reduced. In this case, the contact member 700 provided at the second advancing member 620 side is less likely to move, so that the sheet P may be positioned more stably by this contact member 700.

With this configuration where the contact member 700 is less likely to move, the already-loaded sheet PX located below the contact member 700 and in contact with the contact member 700 is less likely to move.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, when a sheet P is pressed against this contact member 700 functioning as a receiver that receives the sheet P, the contact member 700 may rotate easily in a direction indicated by an arrow 9F about the lower edge 709 (see FIG. 9).

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the lower edge 709 of the contact member 700 comes into contact with the already-loaded sheet PX and receives a drag from the sheet P, so that the lower edge 709 is less likely to move. On the other hand, a section of the contact member 700 located above the lower edge 709 is pressed by the new sheet P and may tilt easily in the direction indicated by the arrow 9F.

In this case, the already-loaded sheet PX located below the contact member 700 is less likely to move. In this case, the already-loaded sheet PX is less likely to be positionally displaced as a result of movement of the lower edge 709 of the contact member 700.

In this exemplary embodiment, each contact member 700 is provided with the tapered surface TM, as mentioned above, so that the contact member 700 is tiltable more easily.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the surface of the contact member 700 located at the tilting side of the contact member 700 is provided with the tapered surface TM, so that the contact member 700 is tiltable more easily.

On the other hand, at the first advancing member 610 side (see FIG. 6), a load occurring as a result of a reaction from the sheet P is mostly received by the distal-end-side coil spring KB1.

In this case, the amount of contraction of the distal-end-side coil spring KB1 is large, causing the contact member 700 to move by a large amount. In this case, the load applied to the sheet P from the first advancing member 610 is reduced.

If the load applied to the sheet P is large, the sheet P may cockle or may flap upward and be misaligned when the load applied to the sheet P is released. Moreover, if the load applied to the sheet P is large, the edges PB of the sheet P may possibly crease.

In contrast, in this exemplary embodiment, the load applied to the sheet P is reduced, so that problems occurring when a large load is applied to the sheet P may be reduced.

The sheets P used may often vary in size, and may include sheets P larger than preset values.

In this case, a sheet P larger than a preset value is excessively pressed by the first advancing member 610 or the second advancing member 620, possibly resulting in deformation of the sheet P or distortion of the sheet P.

In contrast, in this exemplary embodiment, the contact members 700 are retracted from the sheet P if the sheet P is larger than a preset value.

More specifically, if there is a sheet P larger than a preset value, the contact members 700 move in directions opposite to the advancing direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

Accordingly, a situation where an excessive load is applied to the sheet P is suppressed, thereby suppressing deformation of the sheet P as well as distortion of the sheet P.

In this exemplary embodiment, the amount of movement (i.e., the amount of retraction from the sheet P) of the contact member 700 provided at the advancing side is larger than the amount of movement of the contact member 700 provided at the receiving side.

In this case, the sheet P may be positioned more accurately at the receiving side, and the load applied to the sheet P may be released at the advancing side.

As shown in FIG. 8, in this exemplary embodiment, if both the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are to advance toward the sheet P, the amount of movement (i.e., the amount of retraction from the sheet P) of the contact members 700 similarly increases, so that the load applied to the sheet P may be reduced.

If both the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are to advance toward the sheet P, the distal-end-side coil springs KB1 mostly receive the load occurring as a result of a reaction from the sheet P.

In this case, the contact members 700 move by a large amount, so that the load applied to the sheet P from the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 may be reduced.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, an accumulating unit is provided for accumulating sheets P transported from upstream while a process for aligning sheets P is being performed by using the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, during a period from when at least one of the advancing members 600, which may be one of or both of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, starts to advance toward the sheets P to when the advancing member 600 returns to its original position, a new sheet P may sometimes be transported toward the supporter 300 from upstream. In this case, the new sheet P is temporarily accumulated in the accumulating unit in this exemplary embodiment.

In detail, in this exemplary embodiment, the sheet accumulating section 60 (see FIG. 2) functions as the accumulating unit, such that multiple new sheets P are accumulated in the sheet accumulating section 60 during the period from when at least one of the advancing members 600 starts to advance toward the sheets P to when the advancing member 600 returns to its original position.

More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the multiple new sheets P that have reached the sheet accumulating section 60 are accumulated in this sheet accumulating section 60 during the period from when at least one of the advancing members 600 starts to advance toward the sheets P to when the advancing member 600 returns to its original position.

Then, in this exemplary embodiment, when the advancing member 600 returns to its original position, the multiple sheets P accumulated in the sheet accumulating section 60 are transported toward the first load section 43.

For example, in a configuration where multiple sheets P are not accumulated in the sheet accumulating section 60, for example, it may be necessary to temporarily stop an image forming process in the image forming apparatus 2 (see FIG. 1).

In more detail, during the process for aligning sheets P in the first load section 43, the transporting of sheets P toward the first load section 43 is stopped. This affects the image forming apparatus 2 and makes it necessary to temporarily stop the image forming process.

In contrast, in this exemplary embodiment, multiple sheets P are accumulated in the sheet accumulating section 60 so that the effect on the image forming apparatus 2 may be reduced, as compared with the case where multiple sheets P are not accumulated in the sheet accumulating section 60, thereby enhancing the overall processing efficiency of the image forming system 1.

In the above description, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are both given a function for pressing against a sheet P and a function for receiving the sheet P. Alternatively, one of the advancing members 600 may be given only the function for pressing against a sheet P, whereas the other advancing member 600 may be given only the function for receiving the sheet P.

More specifically, in the above description, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are both given the function for advancing toward and retracting from a sheet P. Alternatively, only one of the advancing members 600, that is, the first advancing member 610 or the second advancing member 620, may be given the function for advancing toward and retracting from a sheet P, whereas the other advancing member 600 may be not given the function for advancing toward and retracting from the sheet P. In this case, the other advancing member 600 may be provided in a fixed state.

In this case, since the advancing member 600 provided in the fixed state does not have the advancing function, the advancing member 600 may be regarded not as an advancing member but as a disposed member disposed downstream of a sheet P moving in the width direction.

More specifically, the advancing member 600 provided in the fixed state may be regarded as a disposed member disposed downstream, in a sheet moving direction, of a sheet P moved by being pressed by the other advancing member 600.

More specifically, in this case, the advancing member 600 that presses against the sheet P may be regarded as a moving unit that moves the sheet P supported by the supporter 300 in the width direction of the sheet P.

The advancing member 600 provided in the fixed state may be regarded as a disposed member disposed downstream, in the sheet moving direction, of the sheet P moved by the moving unit.

Furthermore, in this case, at the disposed member side, the contact member 700 provided at the disposed member side is used to receive the sheet P moved by the moving unit.

In this case, this contact member 700 is disposed between the sheet P moved by the moving unit and the disposed member.

At the sheet receiving side, a wall extending in the vertical direction may be provided in place of a member, such as the contact member 700, and the sheet P may be caused to abut on this wall.

The process for loading sheets P will be further described below.

In this exemplary embodiment, the CPU 111 (see FIG. 12) as an example of a processor changes the position of at least a part of each contact member 700 in the up-down direction based on information about at least one sheet P supported by the supporter 300.

In other words, the CPU 111 sets the rotational angle of the contact member 700 about the rotation shaft 612 (see FIG. 5) based on the information about the sheet P loaded on the supporter 300. Then, the CPU 111 causes the contact member 700 to rotate so that the contact member 700 is disposed at the set rotational angle.

The information about the sheet P loaded on the supporter 300 is input by a user via, for example, an operation panel (not shown). The CPU 111 obtains this information input by the user, so as to acquire the information about the sheet P.

In this exemplary embodiment, if the sheet P loaded on the supporter 300 is a specific sheet P, such as thin paper, the CPU 111 causes the supporter 300 to descend, as indicated by reference sign 15A in FIG. 15 (illustrating the state of the supporter 300), unlike a case where the sheet P is not a specific sheet P.

In other words, if the sheet P loaded on the supporter 300 is a specific sheet P, such as thin paper, the CPU 111 increases the descending amount of the supporter 300, as compared with a case where the sheet P is not a specific sheet P.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, when a sensor S shown in FIG. 15 detects an uppermost sheet of sheets P loaded on the supporter 300, the CPU 111 causes the supporter 300 to descend.

In this exemplary embodiment, if the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 are specific sheets P, the descending amount of the supporter 300 is increased.

Although not described above, in this exemplary embodiment, the sensor S for detecting the uppermost sheet P of the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 is provided, as shown in FIG. 15.

As sheets P are sequentially loaded onto the supporter 300 in this exemplary embodiment, the uppermost sheet P of the sheets P reaches a detection position of the sensor S. Accordingly, the uppermost sheet P of the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 is detected by the sensor S.

Then, in this exemplary embodiment, when the sensor S detects this uppermost sheet P, the supporter 300 descends, as described above. In this exemplary embodiment, if the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 are specific sheets P, the descending amount of the supporter 300 is increased.

In other words, if the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 are specific sheets P, the CPU 111 increases the descending amount of the supporter 300 per descent.

In this case, a decrease in the number of sheets P processable per unit time may be suppressed.

In this exemplary embodiment, if the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 are specific sheets P, such as thin paper, the frequency at which the supporter 300 descends increases, possibly causing the number of sheets P processable per unit time to decrease.

In more detail, if the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 are specific sheets P, such as thin paper, the sheets P tend to curl easily. In this case, the loading height of the sheets P tends to increase in the supporter 300, as compared with sheets P that are less likely to curl.

In other words, in a case where the same number of sheets P are loaded on the supporter 300, the loading height of specific sheets P, such as thin paper, tends to increase, as compared with a case where sheets P other than the specific sheets P are loaded.

In this case, the detection of the sheets P is performed frequently by the sensor S, resulting in an increase in the frequency at which the supporter 300 descends.

The descending process of the supporter 300 takes time. Furthermore, while the supporter 300 is descending, a process in the image forming apparatus 2 and a process in the sheet processing apparatus 3 have to be temporarily stopped.

In this case, the number of sheets P processable per unit time decreases, resulting in lower processing efficiency.

In contrast, in this exemplary embodiment, the descending amount of the supporter 300 per descent is increased, so that the frequency at which the supporter 300 descends may be reduced, thereby suppressing a decrease in the processing efficiency caused as a result of the descending process of the supporter 300.

On the other hand, when the descending amount of the supporter 300 increases, the position of the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 is lowered, so that each contact member 700 is less likely to come into contact with the sheets P, or the contact member 700 does not come into contact with the sheets P.

In more detail, when the descending amount of the supporter 300 increases, the contact member 700 and the sheets P are disposed such that, for example, the positional relationship therebetween is as shown in FIG. 15. In this case, the contact member 700 is less likely to come into contact with the sheets P, or the contact member 700 does not come into contact with the sheets P.

In contrast, as mentioned above, when the position of at least a part of the contact member 700 in the up-down direction is changed based on the information about the sheets P, the contact member 700 and the sheets P are disposed such that the positional relationship therebetween is as shown in FIG. 16 (illustrating another positional relationship between the sheets P and the contact member 700).

In other words, as mentioned above, when the rotational angle of the contact member 700 is set based on the information about the sheets P, the contact member 700 and the sheets P are disposed in the state shown in FIG. 16.

More specifically, when the rotational angle of the contact member 700 from a predetermined reference angle (not shown) is set based on the information about the sheets P, for example, the contact member 700 and the sheets P are disposed in the state shown in FIG. 16.

In more detail, in this exemplary embodiment, if the information about the sheets P supported by the supporter 300 indicates that the sheets P are specific sheets P, the rotational angle of the contact member 700 is set such that a distal end 700X of the contact member 700 is disposed at a lower position.

In this case, the contact member 700 is disposed in the state shown in FIG. 16. In more detail, the contact member 700 is disposed beside the specific sheets P.

In this case, the contact between the contact member 700 and the specific sheets P is ensured.

As described above, in this exemplary embodiment, the position of each contact member 700 in the up-down direction is changed based on the information about the sheets P. In other words, the rotational angle of the contact member 700 is set based on the information about the sheets P.

Alternatively, the position of the contact member 700 in the up-down direction may be changed based on information about the position of the supporter 300 in the up-down direction. In other words, the rotational angle of the contact member 700 may be set based on the information about the position of the supporter 300 in the up-down direction.

In this case, if the CPU 111 acquires information indicating that the supporter 300 is located lower than a normal position (i.e., a predetermined position), the CPU 111 changes the position of the contact member 700 in the up-down direction and sets the contact member 700 such that the distal end 700X of the contact member 700 is disposed at a lower position.

In other words, if the CPU 111 acquires the information indicating that the supporter 300 is located lower than the normal position, the CPU 111 sets the rotational angle of the contact member 700 to a new rotational angle and sets the distal end 700X of the contact member 700 to a lower position.

The example shown in FIG. 16 illustrates a state where the sheets P are pressed from opposite sides by using the two contact members 700. In other words, as described above with reference to FIG. 8, the sheets P are pressed from opposite sides by using the two contact members 700.

Alternatively, in the offset loading mode shown in FIG. 9, the position of each contact member 700 in the up-down direction may be set similarly based on the information about the sheets P or the information about the position of the supporter 300.

In other words, in the offset loading mode shown in FIG. 9, the rotational angle of each contact member 700 may be set based on the information about the sheets P or the information about the position of the supporter 300.

According to the above description, when the descending amount of the supporter 300 increases, the position of the sheets P loaded on the supporter 300 is lowered, so that the contact member 700 is less likely to come into contact with the sheets P or the contact member 700 does not come into contact with the sheets P. This is suppressed by setting the rotational angle of the contact member 700. Alternatively, the amount of contact may be compensated for by increasing the width, as in the wide portion 785A, and increasing the descending amount, or the increase in the descending amount may be suppressed so that it is sufficiently within the width of the wide portion 785A.

Furthermore, with regard to a sheet type that requires a large force for aligning sheets by using contact members, the descending amount of the supporter 300 may be controlled such that the area to constantly come into contact with each contact member is large or that the sheets constantly come into contact with a section of the contact member located near a section supported by the coil springs. Specific examples of the sheet type that requires a large force for aligning sheets by using contact members include cardboard and high-density paper.

With regard to a sheet type A that requires a relatively small force for aligning sheets, control may be performed by reducing the number of times a tray is moved by setting the rotational angle in addition to moving the tray. With regard to a sheet type B that requires a relatively smaller force for aligning sheets than the sheet type A, control may be performed by simply moving the tray.

FIGS. 11A and 11B illustrate the moving mechanism 730 (see FIG. 4).

FIG. 11A is a top view of the moving mechanism 730, and FIG. 11B illustrates a part of the moving mechanism 730, as viewed from a direction indicated by an arrow XIB in FIG. 11A.

As mentioned above, in this exemplary embodiment, the moving mechanism 730 is provided for moving the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

As shown in FIG. 11A, the moving mechanism 730 is provided with a guide member 910 that extends in the advancing-retracting direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 and that guides the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, a first moving mechanism 921 for moving the first advancing member 610 is provided. Moreover, a second moving mechanism 922 for moving the second advancing member 620 is provided.

The first moving mechanism 921 is provided with an annular belt member 921A having a section extending in the advancing-retracting direction of the first advancing member 610. Moreover, a first driving motor M101 for moving the belt member 921A is also provided.

In this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 is fixed relative to the belt member 921A. In this exemplary embodiment, the first advancing member 610 advances and retracts in the width direction of the sheet P when the first driving motor M101 is driven.

Likewise, the second moving mechanism 922 is also provided with an annular belt member 922A having a section extending in the advancing-retracting direction of the second advancing member 620 and a second driving motor M102 for driving the belt member 922A. The second advancing member 620 advances and retracts in the width direction of the sheet P when the second driving motor M102 is driven.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, a rotating mechanism 950 is provided, as shown in FIG. 11A.

The rotating mechanism 950 rotates the first advancing member 610 about the base 610A of the first advancing member 610, and rotates the second advancing member 620 about a base 620A of the second advancing member 620.

The rotating mechanism 950 is provided with a support member 951 that extends in the advancing-retracting direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 and that supports the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 from below.

Furthermore, the rotating mechanism 950 is provided with a vertically moving mechanism 952 that vertically moves the support member 951.

The vertically moving mechanism 952 is provided with a third driving motor M103. The vertically moving mechanism 952 is provided with a rotating member 954 that is rotated by the third driving motor M103 and whose first end 954A moves vertically. In this exemplary embodiment, the support member 951 is attached to the first end 954A of the rotating member 954.

In this exemplary embodiment, when the third driving motor M103 is driven to rotate the rotating member 954, as shown in FIG. 11B, the support member 951 moves vertically, thereby causing the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 to move vertically.

As shown in FIG. 8, in this exemplary embodiment, when the sheet P is to be pressed from the opposite sides of the sheet P by using the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, the third driving motor M103 is driven so that the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 descend to the lateral sides of the sheet P supported by the supporter 300.

Subsequently, in this exemplary embodiment, the first driving motor M101 and the second driving motor M102 are driven, so that the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are moved toward the sheet P.

In order to set the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 as shown in FIG. 9, the third driving motor M103 is similarly driven. Accordingly, the first advancing member 610 descends to a lateral side of the sheet P supported by the supporter 300.

Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, while the first advancing member 610 is descending, the movement of the second advancing member 620 is regulated by the already-loaded sheet PX, and the second advancing member 620 is positioned above the already-loaded sheet PX.

Then, the first driving motor M101 is driven so that the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P.

The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure has been provided for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. The exemplary embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the disclosure and its practical applications, thereby enabling others skilled in the art to understand the disclosure for various embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the disclosure be defined by the following claims and their equivalents. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A recording-material processing apparatus comprising: a supporter that supports at least one recording material from below; an advancing unit that advances toward the recording material from a lateral side of the recording material supported by the supporter; and a contact member that is attached to the advancing unit and that comes into contact with an edge of the recording material as the advancing unit advances toward the recording material, the contact member being movable in a direction opposite to an advancing direction of the advancing unit.
 2. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact member is provided at a recording material side of the advancing unit in a horizontal direction relative to a vertical direction of the recording material supported by the supporter, and wherein at least one elastic member is provided between the contact member and the advancing unit.
 3. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one elastic member includes a plurality of elastic members, and wherein the plurality of elastic members are disposed at different positions in an extending direction of the edge of the recording material supported by the supporter.
 4. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one elastic member is a coil spring, and wherein a section of the contact member located lower than a central axis of the coil spring comes into contact with the recording material.
 5. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the advancing unit is provided with at least two holes to which protrusions provided in the contact member are fitted, wherein when the advancing unit advances toward the recording material, a predetermined contact section of the contact member comes into contact with the recording material, and wherein, of the two holes, the hole located closer to the contact section has a cross-sectional area that is larger than a cross-sectional area of the hole located farther from the contact section.
 6. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the hole located closer to the contact section is a long hole, and the hole located farther from the contact section is a circular hole.
 7. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact member is provided at a recording material side of the advancing unit, wherein a plurality of coil springs are provided between the contact member and the advancing unit, wherein the plurality of coil springs are disposed at different positions in an extending direction of the edge of the recording material supported by the supporter, wherein the recording-material processing apparatus further comprises: a receiver that receives the recording material moving as the advancing unit advances toward the recording material; and a plurality of coil springs that support the receiver and that are disposed at different positions in the extending direction of the edge, and wherein a line connecting central axes of the plurality of coil springs provided at the advancing unit and the edge form an angle that is larger than an angle formed by a line connecting central axes of the plurality of coil springs provided at the receiver and the edge.
 8. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a receiver that has a contact member coming into contact with the recording material as the advancing unit advances toward the recording material and that receives the recording material, wherein the at least one recording material includes an already-loaded recording material already loaded on the supporter and a new recording material to be loaded onto the already-loaded recording material, wherein when the new recording material is to be loaded onto the already-loaded recording material in a state where the new recording material is positionally misaligned with the already-loaded recording material, the contact member provided in the receiver is disposed in contact with the already-loaded recording material, and the advancing unit advances toward the new recording material from an opposite side of the receiver with the new recording material interposed therebetween.
 9. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the advancing unit is movable in an up-down direction.
 10. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a lower edge of the contact member is located lower than a lower edge of the advancing unit.
 11. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an accumulating unit that accumulates a plurality of other recording materials moving toward the supporter during a period from when the advancing unit starts to advance toward the recording material supported by the supporter to when the advancing unit returns to an original position.
 12. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when a thickness, in the advancing direction, of a section of the advancing unit that faces the contact member and a thickness of the contact member in the advancing direction are compared, the thickness of the contact member is smaller than the thickness of the advancing unit.
 13. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a processor configured to change a position of at least a part of the contact member in an up-down direction based on information about the recording material supported by the supporter or information about a position of the supporter in the up-down direction.
 14. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact member is rotatable about a rotation axis extending in the advancing direction.
 15. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising: a processor configured to set a rotational angle of the contact member about the rotation axis based on information about the recording material supported by the supporter or information about a position of the supporter in an up-down direction.
 16. A recording-material processing apparatus comprising: a supporter that supports a recording material from below; a moving unit that moves the recording material supported by the supporter in a direction intersecting a vertical direction; a disposed member disposed downstream, in a recording-material moving direction, of the recording material moved by the moving unit; and a contact member that is disposed between the recording material moved by the moving unit and the disposed member and that is attached to the disposed member in a movable manner toward the disposed member, the contact member coming into contact with an edge of the recording material moved by the moving unit.
 17. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein at least one elastic member is provided between the disposed member and the contact member.
 18. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the at least one elastic member includes a plurality of elastic members, and wherein the plurality of elastic members are disposed at different positions in an extending direction of the edge into which the contact member comes into contact.
 19. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the recording material includes an already-loaded recording material already loaded on the supporter, and wherein when the contact member is placed on the already-loaded recording material, the contact member is disposed in contact with the already-loaded recording material, and the disposed member is disposed out of contact with the already-loaded recording material.
 20. The recording-material processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the recording material includes an already-loaded recording material already loaded on the supporter, and wherein when the contact member is placed on the already-loaded recording material, a lower edge of the contact member is in contact with the already-loaded recording material, and wherein the lower edge of the contact member has a thickness smaller than a thickness of an upper edge of the contact member. 